New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday questioned the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that what is now left in its plea challenging the grant of regular bail by the trial court to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in an excise policy-linked money laundering case when the Supreme Court has granted him interim bail.
What did the High Court ask ED?
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna on Wednesday said that it was an academic issue now and asked the ED counsel will the ED again arrest Kejriwal if its plea is allowed. “Answer my question. What will happen if I allow your petition? Will you arrest him again?” the judge asked the ED counsel.
The ED counsel told the court that there was no question of arrest and added that his arrest has not been declared to be illegal.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna also said that applications filed in the case were drafted so beautifully that she got confused.
“Is it for bail, illegal custody or compensation? I am confused,” the judge said, news agency PTI reported.
The High Court has now fixed for hearing on September 5.
ED has challenged a trial court order granting bail to Kejriwal in money laundering case on June 20
The ED has challenged a trial court order granting bail to Kejriwal in the excise policy-linked money laundering case on June 20. The High Court had on June 21 put an interim stay on the operation of the trial court order till passing of an order on the application of the ED, which submitted that the order of the trial court was “perverse”, “one-sided” and “wrong-sided”.
Apex Court granted Kejriwal interim bail in money laundering case on July 12
The Supreme Court on July 12, while referring Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest in the money laundering case to a larger bench, granted him interim bail, saying that certain legal questions raised by him in his plea challenging his arrest by the ED in the money laundering case need to be considered by a larger bench of the apex court.
Kejriwal continues to remain in judicial custody in an excise policy-linked corruption case lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The ED arrested Kejriwal in the money laundering case on March 21 and he was later arrested by the CBI in the corruption case on June 26.